Men’s Basketball Women’s Basketball Carver-Hawkeye Arena

New eras begin for Hawkeye hoops

Coach Fran McCaffery’s starting lineup will look a lot different in 2021-22 as many of the centerpieces of his 2020-21 squad departed during the offseason.

After a breakout 2020-21 season, now-sophomore Caitlin Clark and the Iowa women’s basketball team aim to carry last year’s momentum in 2021-22.

Shivansh Ahuja/The Daily Iowan Shivansh Ahuja/The Daily Iowan

Iowa center Luka Garza dribbles during a men's basketball game between Iowa and Minnesota at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Jan. 10. The Hawkeyes defeated the Golden Gophers, 86-71. Iowa guard Caitlin Clark dribbles during a women's basketball game between Iowa and Minnesota at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Jan. 6. The Hawkeyes defeated the Golden Gophers, 92-79.

One of the best seasons in the history of the Iowa men’s basketball program came to an abrupt end in 2021.

After staying in the Associated Press top 10 for nearly the entire season, finishing third in a competitive Big Ten Conference, and earning a two-seed in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, the Hawkeyes were upset in the Round of 32 by the Oregon Ducks.

Iowa entered the 2020-21 season with as much hype around it as the program had seen in decades, which was made clear by the team’s No. 5 preseason ranking. Heading into the 2021-22 season, expectations will be very different.

Coach Fran McCaffery’s squad lost several key contributors from last season. Luka Garza, the consensus national player of the year and the Iowa men’s basketball program’s all-time leading scorer, is on to a professional career. Second-team All-Big Ten player Joe Wieskamp declared for the NBA Draft. Reserve forward Jack Nunge and starting guard CJ Fredrick both entered the transfer portal in the offseason.

So, next season’s Iowa team will look very different.

Joe Toussaint, Ahron Ulis, Tony Perkins, and sixth-year senior Jordan Bohannon will likely see the majority of the minutes in Iowa’s backcourt next season. In the frontcourt, Keegan Murray will lead the Hawkeyes after a breakout freshman season. He will be joined by Patrick and Connor McCaffery, Kris Murray, and Josh Ogundele.

Fran McCaffery signed a four-year contract extension in March to remain with the Hawkeyes through the 2027-28 season.

Iowa women’s basketball defied the odds in 2020-21, playing its way from preseason unraked to the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16.

In 2021-22, forward McKenna Warnock, center Monika Czinano, and guards Caitlin Clark, Gabbie Marshall, and Kate Martin are all expected to reprise their starting roles in Hawkeye head coach Lisa Bluder’s lineup.

Czinano is the only senior in Iowa’s starting lineup.

Sophomore Caitlin Clark will return to the hardwood in 2021-22 as the reigning Big Ten Freshman of Year and Dawn Staley Award-winner.

Last season, Clark led the nation in scoring — dropping more than 26 points per game.

Clark’s performance in 2020-21 helped her become the first freshman in Iowa women’s basketball history to earn All-America honors.

Czinano also made her presence felt nationally, as she led the country in field goal percentage — making 66.8 percent of her attempts from the floor in 2020-21.

The Hawkeyes finished the 2021 Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament in runner-up fashion, falling to Maryland in the conference title game, 104-84.

Iowa entered the league tournament as the No. 6 overall seed.

The Hawkeyes’ performance in the conference tournament earned them a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

UConn dealt Iowa a season-ending loss, 92-72, in the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16.

Only three players on Iowa’s 2020-21 roster won’t be returning in 2021-22: Zion Sanders, Alexis Sevillian and Megan Meyer.

Carver-Hawkeye Arena

The 2020-21 athletic season was a good one for teams that competed inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

The top-ranked Hawkeye wrestling team won both of its home duals in 2021 on its way to winning its first national championship since 2010. The Iowa men’s basketball team went 13-2 on its home floor, while the women’s basketball team went 10-3. And the Iowa women’s gymnastics team went 4-0 at home last season, eventually clinching the Big Ten regular season title.

Just like at Kinnick Stadium, fans were not permitted to attend events at Carver-Hawkeye Arena during the 2020-21 season because of precautions taken amid the pandemic. The plan for 2021-22 is to allow fans back into the arena.

Carver-Hawkeye Arena is named after Roy Carver, a longtime supporter of the University of Iowa. The arena is one of the 25 largest university-owned facilities in the nation and opened in January of 1983. The arena seats 15,500 fans.

Also typically the site for UI graduation ceremonies, Carver-Hawkeye Arena is an integral part of life on campus.